While we love everything about our handbags – the texture, the design, the beautiful linings the versatility – giving them a name can prove troublesome.

Some leather bag designers are inspired by flowers names or to call their creations after the most famous IT girl of the day. But we wanted to do something different, yet logical.

VV Amore head girl Sarah explained that she wanted to put her gorgeous bags into four categories, so people would know what they were getting by the name.

She said: “Cutesy is the name for all the smaller bags and clutches, because they are. Slouchy is for shoulder bags. Hippy is for messenger bags because they sit on your hip, and Townie for totes because I figured you could go to town with filling them up!”

So there you have it, the VV Amore system. And actually when you look at the adorable range of bags, it makes perfect sense.

The Cutesy made of hair-on cow leather in funky pink pony or zebra is, of course, Cutesy Moo.

The Slouchy in zebra and leopard is bang on trend as Slouchy Exotic, with its flower power sister being Slouchy Uptown Vintage.

On the hip, and looking hip, Hippy is Classic in chic colourways and Convertible so versatile with long strap, short strap options.

Going to town with Townie, you have Townie Babe with bright stylish Chic in eye-popping orange, pretty purple and classy deep red and black. Or take Townie Flower with the blooming wonderful flower feature.

What this means is that when we cook up a delicious new style of designer bag, we’re already halfway to finding the perfect name.

What would you call your ideal handbag?

Summertime is in the bag...

We’re planning a new addition to the VV Amore family that will bring a whiff of France to your summer style.

Our designer Sarah has been working on some new styles that promise to sprinkle some grown-up vibe over the proceedings.

She said: “I was just thinking about the summer and trying to inject some colour using something other than plain old leather.

“I love this basket weave leather; it always reminds me of the summers with the French basket bags.

“The world seems to have gone mad on pastels and I just wanted to add some brightness that would be a bit more permanent whatever the weather is doing.

“It could be back to winter conditions but at least I have a bright coloured bag to remind me of the sunshine.”

The new bag – as yet unnamed – is super stylish and lets the colour and texture of the hide speak for itself.

It’s going to bring some of the vibrant colours of the Mediterranean to whichever part of the UK you are in – however gloomy the weather.

We imagine you can add it to your outfit and in an instant you’ll be transported to strolling by the bars and harbour of St Tropez. Rubbing shoulders with the beautiful people of Europe.

We love this chic little addition to our range, and we hope you will too when it arrives.

Man bag from VV Amore

So we’ve created something that is just perfect – it’s macho and stylish, yet useful and, well, deep. Deep because that’s what you need in a bag that’s going to hold everything you need for work and play.

The VV Amore Italian leather man bag is a messenger style bag finished with chunky, solid components. It will look better and better as it matures, in a way we know our favourite men will.

On the practical side, this handsome bag has a hidden double pocket under the flap as well as a zipped one on the back. A magnetic snap – even the phrase sounds appealing – secures all the important stuff and a tough webbing strap finishes it off.

This bloke’s bag is the last word on macho and we can’t think of any men who wouldn’t look lovely with this leather luggage. It is big enough to fit a laptop and files…

We know several people who have announced that our man bag is the perfect gift for the man in their life. And just as many men who are delighted to find a grown-up bag that does the job of a brief case without being stuffy and dull.

What more could the man who has everything want?

Meet Lesley Girvan who designed a twist on the Slouchy Lamb and made it very exotic with some wonderful leopard print!

A close up of the handmade bag:

And now the back!

Goodbye Mulberry handbag, hello VVA handbag!

We start with the understanding that a leather bag has a job to do. It’s an important job and mustn’t be underestimated. You must put all the things you need in it and, crucially, be able to find them when you need them – otherwise your designer piece will be a beautiful waste of time. We create bags that have pockets where you’ll need pockets, secure compartments to keep things safe and straps that work.

Getting the right straps or handles is a big deal for a handbag designer. At VVAmore our larger leather handbags usually have a choice – either a detachable cross-body strap, a handle, a shoulder strap or a clutch that folds up to create a handle grip. If you can’t carry yours comfortably and easily there really isn’t much point, is there?

So far, so functional. But a designer handbag takes all those practical considerations to a new level.  The material, for a start, is more than just hard-wearing and sensible. A leather handbag will be carefully sewn from some of the finest, softest hides available. They are dyed and textured to create something unique and special. Just the butter-soft touch of the leather is enough to prove it was money well spent. How can anyone not feel better when they can reach out and caress beautiful soft leather?

And the colour of a leather handbag is unsurpassed by fabric or plastic imitations. Designer handbags are created from colourfast leathers where the deepest hues go right through the hide. As your handmade bag ages it will subtly season to a fabulous shade – unique and glorious.

Our handmade handbags at VV Amore go one better than simply being gorgeous – they are differently gorgeous on each side. Knowing that a designer handbag isn’t an everyday purchase our designers like to give two different looks, but incorporating a unique feature on one side. Voila a new look simply by flipping your leather handbag over.

We know your designer handbag is too special to send most of its time languishing in the wardrobe. Possibly the likes of Victoria Beckham and Kate Middleton can conjure a new and matching leather handbag for each outfit, but most real women can’t. Apart from anything they don’t have the time to swap the contents from one handmade handbag to another. That’s why at VVAmore we like to get it right first time and create a designer handbag that can stay by your side most of the time… the perfect companion.

But that isn’t the whole picture with designer handbags. There’s an added extra ingredient that a handmade bag will bring you. It could be that your leather bag is so beautiful it does the talking if you don’t feel like it, it may be that it is subtly stylish and pulls together the most ordinary outfit. Whatever it does a designer handbag from VV Amore is a magical addition to your wardrobe.

Red hot petals with leopard skin

Subtle but strong - zebra with a splash of colour

Here at VV Amore’s handbag HQ we’re sick to death of grey skies and dark colours. Now, thankfully a few buds are poking out of the ground and the mornings are getting brighter.

This means that summer is not really so far off. And to celebrate we have come up with a couple of bright new bag colourways.

Our favourite Townie Flower has proved she’s no shrinking violet with some zingy combinations of exotic animal and bright flowers.

And this month’s London Fashion Week showed that we are bang on trend with many designers showing ranges with bold blotches of red and orange. There were also florals popping up but not in a girly way.

It seems the flower has grown up and got some attitude at least for spring and summer 2012.

I hope you’ll agree that the new Townie Flower additions are perfect for taking you from the gloom of winter to the – hopefully – warm, bright days that are just around the corner.

If you’d like a bit of petal power to push you over the hump from one season to the next, then have a look at what we’ve created.

No, we don’t mean putting on your lipstick and trotting down to the disco. Life coach Lynne Copp has written a book called Dancing Round the Handbags that aims to help hard-working women.

As I don’t know any women who don’t work hard, that must be all of us.

Lynne’s book compares life to a handbag and uses different aspects to see what’s holding you back and how you might reach your goals.

She said: “By reviewing your dances and de-cluttering your handbag, you will return to the dance floor of life, to dance to the tunes that you want to dance to.”

In the chapters of the book, she looks at all aspects of life, including health, work, the masks you put on in public, how others see you and what you really want to achieve.

Over the years Lynne held several high-powered positions before running her own business called The Worklife Company.

Alongside the book, Lynne runs workshops, retreats and special coaching for women.

She said:  “Women are always juggling. They are the ones that have to buy the birthday card, remember to feed the cat and do a million and one things.

“But nurturing themselves always comes at the bottom of the list. Yet when you ask women who is to blame when one of the plates drops they say they are. Women believe they should be seen to do it all.’’

Dancing Round The Handbags by Lynne Copp is published by Ecademy Press and is available from Amazon.co.uk.

Bright and breezy at VV Amore

The glitter and sparkle of winter was lovely… for a while. I don’t know about you, but I’m ready for a shakeup now. I’m craving some brightness in my life.

It’s time to have a look at what we can do to start feeling a little spring-like, even if it is too cold to get rid of big boots and heavy coats just yet. Ah, I hear you say, how about a bag?

Good suggestion. Accessories can be the ideal way to edge towards the new season, even if the rest of your wardrobe isn’t quite there yet.

Black and white will be a big trend this year – the catwalks were full of it  – either all black, all white or a mix of the both. VVAmore can, of course, provide you with plenty of options to catch this trend – Slouchy Babe in black and white, Townie Chic in complete black and for a bit of mix we reckon the Slouchy Joe done in black and white would be cool.

Styles are short-strapped and oversized or oversized clutches and, of course, handbags that make you feel very ladylike. Think HM the Queen – or at least our favourite duchess, Kate – here. We have a few designs in the pipeline and will post them soon.

Stripes make it again and we think we will be right on trend mixing this with bold colours – check out some summer fun here.

Bright in-your-face colour blocks stick with us in the spring season so colour block with a handbag is an easy take on this trend.

Other brights will be around too – orange is going mainstream, red is coming back out again (it’s been a while) and electric blue and turquoise will have their day in the sun.

Let's hope there's no pants in there (Abdone via Dreamstime)

An open letter to the nations husbands and boyfriends.

Dear Sir,

You’ve left it until the last minute, haven’t you? Well don’t panic – and certainly don’t go anywhere near the knicker department of a department store.

Apparently by the end of Christmas day 24 million pair of knickers will have been carefully chosen, wrapped and presented by men to women.

And the shocking statistic is that half of those pants won’t get worn. Instead they get stuck in the back of the drawer behind the every day M&S and the super comfy Sloggis.

They might get worn, just the once probably, before all the left-over turkey is finished. And then they’ll find their way to the back of the same drawer.

We appreciate the sentiment fellows, really. We understand that you probably had to gird your loins for a trip into the lingerie department. But there is a better way.

So, were you planning to buy some scanties for your babe? Hmm. Oh dear, you’ve actually shelled out on something frilly, lacy and colourful.

Gentlemen, for the good of our over-crowded knicker drawers and our over-used “oh how lovely” smiles, stop buying nasty scratchy undies for us. We don’t like them.

For the record, pant buying is a personal thing. There are a great many things we would love for you to do for us instead, just ask.

If you want to be sure to put a genuine smile on your lady’s face you won’t go wrong with a gift voucher for something special and classy such as a VV Amore bag.

PS Visit the VV Amore site for gift vouchers and much more.